In addition to looking at personal characteristics such as age and relationship status, the researchers divided the countries into high- and middle-to-low income groups according to average household earnings.

CNN: People in affluent nations may be more depression-prone

Dominating the list are high-income countries, whose average ecological footprint is now five times that of low-income nations.

CNN: Earth 'going downhill' as consumption rises, report says

The number of claims dropped, but the average award rose, suggesting that more high-merit cases got their day in court while low-merit filings were deterred or settled for less.

ECONOMIST: Tort reform